The Flora Children Chronicles
by Echo Avalon
Summary: Three triplets are being sent to a new boarding school for children with special... gifts... read on to find evil warlocks, magic mirrors, and annoying older sisters! (And that's just the first chapter...)
1. The Face in the Mirror

The Flora Children Chronicles

Chapter 1: The Face in the Mirror

Lily stared forlornly from the window in the train cabin. Her two sisters were elsewhere, and Lily was fine with that. Mari was probably hiding in a dark place with a boy or two somewhere on the train, and Rose was probably planning what she could add to her garden. Lily leaned back in her seat and sighed happily. She preferred her sisters to most people, but she preferred emptiness to her sisters.

_ And now that I'm alone…_ she pulled from her knapsack a small, round mirror. It was an unadorned mirror, no intricate carvings or even a handle to hold it. But its simplicity hid a secret. Something peculiar had caught her eye when she had purchased it at the pawnshop. Something— or was it someone?

Her fingers stroked its back as she gazed intently into the silvery depths. She saw her own face: the sad blue-gray eyes, the tumbling cinnamon-brown hair. But as she watched, her eyes turned a shining emerald in the mirror. The face seen in the mirror turned a light chestnut. Freckles spilled across the nose and cheeks as a shock of wavy, forest green hair fell into its eyes. The mouth parted in a smile, revealing pearly white teeth. "Hello!" it chimed.

Lily started from the trance that had taken her as she'd watched her reflection distort. "Wha-wha-wha…" she stuttered, unable to form words.

The figure pushed back a strand of hair and laughed happily. "Is it finally time? Did you finally come to unlock me from this place- oh, this hateful, spiteful mirror…" She paused, and her eyes brightened. "All right! You can get me out of here now!"

"I… think you have the wrong person. Who— no, what are you?" choked Lily.

"I don't care! Hurry and get me outta here. This place is so cramped!"

"But I— but you— but…" She finally shook her head. "Tell me who you are."

"If you insist," sighed the person in the mirror, rolling her eyes.

"My name is Ivy-Blossom. I am a fairy and I've been cursed into this dreadful scrap of glass you call a mirror.

"I was cursed here by a warlock named Takn. I used to be his helper but one day he just… I don't know, he lost it. Started talking to himself about how no one else appreciated his genius. I tried to ask him to tell me, but he cursed me into this mirror. Last I heard he was vanquished in a battle long ago. I was left on his table in the wizard's tower for quite a while before a Wiccan called Jezabelle found me. She didn't look at me very carefully, but she could feel my magic energy. I was then sold at a pawnshop for Ÿ34, and made to sit in a small pouch with a bunch of powders.

"I've been waiting so long for someone to— hey, who's that?"

Lily whipped around and saw her sister, Rose, knocking on the door. "Hold on!" she hissed at Ivy-Blossom and tucked her into her knapsack. Rose opened the door.

"Hello, dear sister. How are you doing?" Rose's thick auburn hair tumbled softly form where it was held in place by a barrette. Her brown eyes were always sparkling mischievously, and today was no exception. Her knee-length red dress was jazzed up by bright pink sequins stitched in the shape of a rose in the bottom right corner, as well as her pink-and-white striped necktie tied in a bow around her waist. She was wearing her favorite crimson patent-leather boots, the ones that came up to her knees. A long, fingerless, almost see-through red glove on one arm completed the look.

Rose perched delicately on the end of the sofa-like seat. "I was worried that you'd be lonely back here, all by yourself, but now I find you looking in a mirror. Why hide it, Lily? It's just a mirror."

Lily slowly breathed. "Rose, I wanna show you something quite odd." Reaching into the knapsack again, she pulled out her mirror. "Ivy-Blossom, you can come out now. My sister is here," she said to the mirror.

Rose looked at the mirror, gave her sister a doubtful look, and stood to leave. "Look, it was your idea to leave. Don't get all psychotic on me, sis." Turning to Lily, Rose gave her a hug. "Don't worry about anything, Lily. I'm sure the new school will be fine."

Lily waited until Rose left and then glared at the mirror. "Ivy-Blossom, I know you're listening! Get out here!"

Tentatively, her elfin face appeared. "You called?"

"My sister thinks I'm crazy now, and it's all your fault." Lily growled.

"If it's any comfort to you, I already thought that you were crazy—"

"Shut up!" Burying her face in her hands, Lily exhaled angrily. "What am I doing? I'm fighting with a mirror?! This is stupid. A dream. I wanna wake up now…"

Ivy-Blossom looked down sadly. "It's not adream," she murmured. "It's a nightmare."

OOC: So, what do you think? I don't know if I like the title or not, but I am working on it. I'll probably average a chapter a week, so email me with a rating or a question at


	2. Shadows

The Flora Children Chronicles

Chapter 2: Shadows 

Rose practically skipped down the train. Her feet felt light enough to dance, and her heart was merry and excited. Why shouldn't she be? She would soon be at a school where it would be normal for acres of land to be suddenly plowed, for leaves to unfurl at her urging, for her to hide among the roses and never once be scratched. She was completely in tune with Mother Nature. Being the eldest had its charms. She giggled. Charms!

She was so gleeful she didn't see a young man a bit older than her, walking swiftly to the head of the train. Occasionally he would peek in a cabin or two but did not stop. At least, until Rose ran into him.

"Look where you're going!" he yowled at her, rubbing his sore shin. He rose angrily and moved to let her pass.

Rose looked him over, thoroughly unimpressed. He wore a thick coal-colored trench coat with a hood attached. His pants, which matched his coat, were ripped and frayed at the bottom. The shoestrings and soles of his Vans were painted black as well. The hood of his coat hid his face from her eyes. "Whatever, Inky. I'm just here to see my sister." His eyes narrowed behind her as she slipped into Mari's room. She shut the clear glass door in his face with a wicked smile.

Marigold Flora was draped around two grungy looking guys who were kissing her cheeks and bare arms as she chatted in a mixture of French and English on her cell phone. "Yeah, Mark, I know we've been together for a month but I don't think the long distance thing will work out." She rolled her eyes. "_C'est__ la vie_. You can't always have what you want." Rose's younger sister snapped her phone shut and looked up at her with a wink. "What brings you here, Rosy? I didn't think you liked _ma petites poupouletes en susucre_."

Rose grinned and matched her sister's stare with one of her own. Leaning against the wall, she raised her eyebrows at the comment. "Sugary-wugary chickie-wickies? What will you think up next, Mari?" She opened the door and slid out, hoping that her sister might join her. But it was an empty hope. Rose knew she wouldn't leave her suitors.

She sprinted sadly down the hall as quickly as down from a thistle. But upon reaching her room, Rose collapsed onto the couch. For reasons she could not understand, she began thinking about the boy in black. "Inky!" she had yelled at him scornfully. She cringed at the thought. Wasn't she always proclaiming that you shouldn't mistreat others? Hypocrite, she called herself. You are the world's worst, meanest, most awful—

_Knock, knock, knock._ She looked up to find the boy in black looking calmly at her through her window. Jumping to her feet, she smoothed her dress and straightened the tie around her waist. She opened the door expectantly and smiled shyly at him. "Um… hello. I—"

He grinned slyly. "Mind if I come in?" he asked breezily.

She gawked, mouth half-open, in response. "Uh… who are you?"

Leaning against the doorway, he smiled that secretive smile. "Name's Shadow. _Now _can I come in?" Seeing a suspicious look on her face, he pulled the hood from his face. She could see that his appearance was exceptionally handsome, and very mysterious. His eyes held the look of an animal hungering for something. For a moment she felt it hungered for her.

The moment passed. "Pardon me, Shadow, but I usually don't let strange guys just wander into my room whenever they feel like it." Her mouth had taken off again. "I really don't think—"

"No, you _don't_ think, do you, nymph?" he interrupted. His eyes smoldered her, and she backed away from him, into her room, leaving the door open. All she could think about was _How did he know? How does he know that I am part forest nymph?_ "If you could think, you wouldn't have opened the door." He strolled in and began to rummage through her things.

With a cry, she came at him; but before she could take two steps she was engulfed by shadows so thick that she choked. She sank to her knees, weakened. She half-crawled, half-dragged herself as far as she could.

"There you go, not thinking again, my damsel," she heard his voice sneer. _Mother Nature,_ she thought desperately, _help me…_

Energy seared through her, her Mother's small token. She ran through the thickening shadows as it ebbed, tears streaming down her face. She choked, gasped, and there! Sunlight, oh, sweet light! She threw herself at the boy, trying to hurt any inch of him that she could.

_Interesting, _Shadow smirked, catching her wrists in his hands. _She prays to the nature goddess_. He saw the tears flowing down her face, heard her short gasps, and knew that goddess or not, he had nearly killed her. He pushed her against the wall, where she fell, sobbing, into a pile. "Virgin, I am afraid that I must now take my leave. But fear not! I shall return for you someday." Pulling her face up to his, he kissed her soundly and left, his laughter echoing through the hall.

Shuddering, Rose felt the teardrops sliding down her chin and onto her dress. All hope she had had for the new school was gone. The contents of her bags were strewn everywhere. Her wild clothing lay rumpled every which way, plain undergarments had been scattered around, and wisps of shadow still circled around her ceiling.

Virgin, he had called her, and nymph, and damsel. Sugarcoated names that his sinister mouth used against her. _I'll be back for you?_ What did that mean?

Rose stood uneasily, and touched a hand to her mouth as she stared out the open door. A few more tears trickled down her face. She loathed Shadow, and always would. _But you liked it when he kissed you…_

OOC: Shadow's a jerk, huh? Very creepy. But who can tell? Maybe he'll turn out okay…

…

Well, maybe not. Like always, RATE!


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